by Dan Carpenter | Jul 15, 2013 | 2013, Blog
If I told you that I could reduce the running costs of your clothes dryer by about 50% – would you be interested?
Most of you know that an easy and continual way to save money is to connect energy hungry appliances to an off-peak tariff, most commonly hot water services and pool pumps. Even Energex now offers a $250 ‘Positive Payback’ reward for hooking your pool pump up to the Economy Tariff 33 (read more about the Positive Payback here: http://bit.ly/VCW9mN).
But throughout winter, it is often the clothes dryer which causes a surge in the power bill of a number of residents. So many of us use our clothes dryer on a daily basis to ensure a constant supply of clean work and school uniforms, even on the coldest and wettest of days. And with the constant rain the Gold Coast has been experiencing for the past few weeks, it’s safe to assume that thousands of families have been doing the same thing at peak times – running their clothes dryer nonstop! By connecting your clothes dryer to an off-peak tariff you can significantly reduce its running costs.
The catch? Well it just means that you can’t use your dryer during peak times* but then every time you are using it, the running costs are up to 50% off the normal domestic tariff. Not a bad trade off in my opinion.
And for another added bonus, Energex don’t always restrict your power supply. I have my washing machine & clothes dryer connected to an off-peak tariff and without even thinking, I tried to use them both at about 6pm the other night, and guess what? They operated as normal.
This just shows that Energex don’t restrict power to your off-peak appliances every single night at exactly the same time; I guess it just depends on the overall energy consumption in your suburb at the time. But in general, off-peak tariffs provide electricity for up to 18 hours a day.
*Generally between about 5pm-9pm each day, but exact timings may vary and are determined by Energex
If you want to know more about off-peak tariffs and our services, come down to our Gold Coast showroom and speak to me or one of my fantastic team members today.
Dan Carpenter
Dan the Sparky Man
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Dan Carpenter has built his business to be one of the most successful and trusted electrical businesses on the Gold Coast. He completed his apprenticeship in Adelaide at a young age. With a passion for self-driven success, he established his own enterprise on the Gold Coast at 22, quickly becoming a leader in the local building and solar industries. His dedication led him to win the Gold Coast Small Business Award and earn the title of Accredited Master Electrician.
by Dan Carpenter | Jun 30, 2013 | 2013, Blog
I have recently had the privilege of travelling to Vietnam to undertake some consultancy and project management work for a company called Plantation Grown Timbers (Vietnam) Limited. The opportunity was presented to me by the owners, Ian and Yung Burden, who are Gold Coast residents and long-time customers of Dan the Sparky Man.
Plantation Grown Timbers (PGT) is part of a global business, dedicated to ethical design, production and supply of traditionally crafted furniture and accessories, manufactured in strict accord with international, environmental and workplace guidelines. It was started by Ian 15 years ago from the boot of his car and has grown dramatically to now export its uniquely designed reclaimed and recycled solid wooden furniture all over the world, particularly to North America, Europe and Australasia. The arts and handicrafts company also provides employment to over 850 very skilled people.
Located in Ho Chi Minh City, the PGT factory is the size of a Bunning’s warehouse and they are expanding. The increased production schedule requires more machinery which in turn requires more power. The electrical system to the entire factory needed to be upgraded to prevent their existing structure from being overloaded.
I was brought in as part of the team to ensure that all works were completed to Australian Standards whilst assisting to future proof their business and production requirements for any further growth (from a power consumption perspective).
Prior to arriving in Vietnam, my first task was to assist Ian and Yung to select a local electrical contractor with whom they should award the contract. They had all 3 quotations translated into English, provided me with the plans and scope of works and then had me select the local contractor who I deemed to be the most appropriate and skilled for the job.
The contractor was selected and two weeks later I was on a plane!
When I arrived in Vietnam, it was straight down to business. I spent the morning familiarising myself with the factory and the staff I would be working with and then as soon as production closed down at lunchtime, it was all systems go. The team of 20 Electricians was led by Hung, my direct liaison and the only person who spoke any English. Let’s just say that smiles, nods and thumbs up very quickly became the preferred communication for the day!
To complete the upgrade we were required to shut down power to the entire complex and as you can imagine, a manufacturing plant that employs 850 people cannot afford even 5 minutes of downtime. This gave us less than 48 hours to complete all works without disrupting any production requirements – talk about pressure!
The scope of works was enormous, the days and nights were long (I think the longest stretch was 20 hours straight), and the language barrier was at times quite challenging, but I’m pleased to say that Stage 1 was completed on time, with full production re-commencing at 7am Monday morning as scheduled.
It was a fantastic opportunity to work with a local team and to be so welcomed by all the PGT staff. I received amazing hospitality from Ian and Yung themselves and I very much look forward to being part of their team on any future expansions.
Now if only I could get my staff to address me as Mr Dan…
If you love my work in Vietnam and want to know more about our services, come down to our Gold Coast showroom and speak to me or one of my fantastic team members today.
Dan Carpenter
Dan the Sparky Man
Come and join our social pages for the latest information, tips and products updates
Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/DantheSparkyMan
Twitter page: https://twitter.com/DanTheSparkyMan
Dan Carpenter has built his business to be one of the most successful and trusted electrical businesses on the Gold Coast. He completed his apprenticeship in Adelaide at a young age. With a passion for self-driven success, he established his own enterprise on the Gold Coast at 22, quickly becoming a leader in the local building and solar industries. His dedication led him to win the Gold Coast Small Business Award and earn the title of Accredited Master Electrician.
by Dan Carpenter | Jun 15, 2013 | 2013, Blog
If there is one thing I love doing, it is seeing a great project through from the beginning to the end. We have recently completed an extensive project at The Address Residences in beautiful Sanctuary Cove on the Gold Coast.
Being almost a year-long job, I had the opportunity to work with a number of great people and be a part of the project’s transition from concept to completion.
This residential development, which we began working on June 2012, was one of the largest under construction on the Gold Coast. Using the latest and greatest energy efficiency products, the estate transformed to be filled with 6 star energy efficient rated homes. A total of 31 luxury homes, several being lakefront, were given our ‘Dan the Sparky Man touch’ to make for a very energy efficient premier gated estate. This stage of development follows on from the first stage which we completed back in 2010.
Sunland Group is an Australian development company based in Royal Pines, on the Gold Coast, QLD. Design is paramount in everything they create is evidenced from their first residential home in 1983 to their iconic developments such as Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast and the landmark Q1, the World’s tallest residential tower. Their motto is “Creating Art Through Architecture”, which is very fitting for their residential development, The Address at Sanctuary Cove.
Here is a little bit more about The Address and what the estate has to offer.
Inspired architectural thinking and a commitment to harmonious design have ensured that The Address Residences sit gracefully within their landscaped environment. For the Lakefront Residences, the palette is raw and elemental, with stone and classic white perfectly complemented by lush, living greenery. The cool discretion of the exterior creates a contemporary and very private home, whilst still allowing natural light to spill into the living areas.
The strikingly modern Park Residences are designed to capture an abundance of natural light, thanks to the generous floor-to-ceiling windows throughout. Indoor luxury continues outdoors with each Park Residence concealing a sun-drenched private courtyard. Here, you can entertain in total privacy whilst enjoying the near-perfect weather of Sanctuary Cove’s idyllic sub-tropical location. Source: Sunland Group
I am proud to have been involved with this Sunland Group development and those lucky enough to own one of these now outstanding energy efficient homes were happy with the end result too.
Our company is committed to furthering our social responsibility to the environment and is passionate about helping home & business owners to reduce their carbon footprint. If you love our work at Sanctuary Cove and want to know more about energy efficiency, come down to our Gold Coast showroom and speak to me or one of my fantastic team members today.
Dan Carpenter
Dan the Sparky Man
Come and join our social pages for the latest information, tips and products updates
Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/DantheSparkyMan
Twitter page: https://twitter.com/DanTheSparkyMan
Dan Carpenter has built his business to be one of the most successful and trusted electrical businesses on the Gold Coast. He completed his apprenticeship in Adelaide at a young age. With a passion for self-driven success, he established his own enterprise on the Gold Coast at 22, quickly becoming a leader in the local building and solar industries. His dedication led him to win the Gold Coast Small Business Award and earn the title of Accredited Master Electrician.
by Dan Carpenter | May 30, 2013 | 2013, Blog
Congratulations to Dan Carpenter the Director of Dan the Sparky Man on becoming a finalist in the 2012 Gold Coast Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards.
This comes after Dan the Sparky Man won the June Gold Coast Business Excellence Awards for Trades, Services and Professions. Dan Carpenter, who left school in Year 11 to join the electrical trade, has grown his business into a million-dollar enterprise just six years after starting out in a van.
The 2012 Business News Publications’ Young Entrepreneur Awards will showcase the city’s next generation of clever and ambitious business leaders.
Business owners operating in the Gold Coast region, and aged 40 or under in 2012, now have their chance to be acclaimed as one of the glitter strip’s top young entrepreneurs. As a finalist they are among the Gold Coast’s voluminous talent pool of maturing business stars whose sights are trained on success.
Book your ticket now for the prestigious Young Entrepreneur 2012 Awards luncheon on November 2 at East Restaurant & Lounge Bar, Broadbeach.
Come and join the Dan The Sparky Man social pages for the latest information, tips and products or even join in to the conversation:
Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/DantheSparkyMan
Twitter page: https://twitter.com/DanTheSparkyMan
For more information or to arrange a consultation, contact us at Dan the Sparky Man on (07) 5578 3481 or info@danthesparkyman.com.au
Dan Carpenter has built his business to be one of the most successful and trusted electrical businesses on the Gold Coast. He completed his apprenticeship in Adelaide at a young age. With a passion for self-driven success, he established his own enterprise on the Gold Coast at 22, quickly becoming a leader in the local building and solar industries. His dedication led him to win the Gold Coast Small Business Award and earn the title of Accredited Master Electrician.
by Dan Carpenter | May 15, 2013 | 2013, Blog
Spring is in the air and with the abundant sunshine we are fortunate to receive on the Gold Coast, it is a perfect time to organise your solar installation.
A lot of residents have recently received their power bills, which included price rises for power since the beginning of July 2012. Don’t despair, solar is still a great way to reduce your power bills immediately and lessen the effect of the forecast price rises that will occur over the next few years.
Think about it: install a solar energy system now, and lower your electricity bills even as you power up all those hungry appliances like air conditioners and pool filters! The cost savings you enjoy with solar energy may even help pay for that much needed holiday.
Take advantage of sunny spring days to harvest that energy and turn it into usable power for your home or business.
At ‘Dan the Sparky Man‘ we employ a team of our own electricians who manage the whole job, from the initial quote right through to the commissioning of your system, and completion of all applicable paperwork. We have over 12 years of experience in the electrical and installation industry, so you can be sure that you’re talking to an expert.
We employ only fully licensed, Master Electricians, who are also accredited for solar installations by the Clean Energy Council of Australia.
We make it easy
We provide you with fixed price quotations so you have no surprise out of pocket expenses. We also take care of all the Government, Energex & rebate paperwork.
Talk to us at Dan the Sparky Man for a tailored solar solution to meet your individual needs. For more information or to arrange a consultation, contact us on (07) 5578 3481 or info@danthesparkyman.com.au
Dan Carpenter has built his business to be one of the most successful and trusted electrical businesses on the Gold Coast. He completed his apprenticeship in Adelaide at a young age. With a passion for self-driven success, he established his own enterprise on the Gold Coast at 22, quickly becoming a leader in the local building and solar industries. His dedication led him to win the Gold Coast Small Business Award and earn the title of Accredited Master Electrician.
